More computer tricks

January was the third month of Photoshop lessons at Crafting in Style, with two more fantastic lessons and challenges.

Lesson 5: Vintage hand-tinted effect



Lesson 6: Text effects



I have been enjoying the challenges so much; there is always something new to learn and experiment with.

Australia Day weekend

I have had some very special times with family and friends over the weekend, though not very much scrapping. I did manage to finish off a little project that I've bee working on for Crafting in Style ~ a mini-album made using We R Memory Keepers papers from the February 'Promenade' pack:






Instructions can be found over in the Crafting in Style 'Mini Album' forum.

In Style Monthly Pack

The new In-Style Monthly Pack is up over at Crafting in Style... I loved working with the We R Memory Keepers 'Promenade' papers ~ soft and a little more subdued than my usual style, but gorgeous colours and designs.

These are my layouts using the pack:





And this is one I did for the January 1,2,3 Challenge using product from the pack with some items from my own stash thrown in:

Second Cousins

This is a layout I created for Relsi's Challenge at the Scrap Therapy cyber crop:



The criteria was to use the website colours and include white dots.

OMG... another pink layout...

And I'm loving my Inque Boutique stamps and used two different ones on this layout:

January kits at SWV

January class kits have been uploaded to the store at Scrap with V. These are my layout designs:







The kits are excellent value and include step-by-step instructions and product for three layouts.

On track

So far I am on track with the 14 layouts in 14 days challenge... This is a layout based on a Becky Fleck sketch, featured as the January sketch at Scrap World:



Eight days, eight layouts, and feeling groovy.

Inspiration challenge

Over at Scrap Therapy, Julie's 'Inspiration Challenge' for January is to use any image from the Living Creatively website banner. After being totally mesmerized by the images, I finally made a decision and got scrapping.

This is my layout:



I was inspired by the red and blue fabric and texture, especially when I remembered I had the perfect fabric scraps in my sewing basket.

I was also inspired by Donna, who recently reminded me about the Cosmo Cricket journalling tags buried in my stash. I received the Luxe patterned paper from Neen as part of her Secret Santa gift.

14 day challenge

Over at Crafting in Style, the gorgeous Kaz has issued an open challenge to create 14 layouts in 14 days. Hmmmm... not sure how I'll go, but so far I'm on track. It's a great incentive to kick-start the year and keep the momentum happening.

This is one that I did for Donna's New Year challenge over at Scrap with V:

Out and about

Another day with the Brisbane CISters today... back into the swing of our monthly informal crop, and it was heaps of fun.

Today we enjoyed coffee and mudcake and popcorn and bikkies and shopping and chatting and even a bit of scrapping. It was fantastic to catch up with Jolene and Liz and Leone and Linda and Ngaire and the gorgeous Vicki, who has moved down from Townsville.

This is one of the layouts I did at the crop today:



It's for Challenge 2 of the Crafting in Style cyber crop, using chipboard buttons and a 'taste of summer' theme. I'm used up some more left over bits and pieces from my stash. The only new product is the Creative Imaginations journalling card.

"Splashing good time"

... is the theme of the January cyber crop over at Crafting in Style.

These are some of my layouts:

Challenge 1: Warm colours, bright colours, and a choice of 'this and that' embellishments



Challenge 3: Based on Ally's sketch

More stamping techniques

Kaz has added another stamping technique to the list over at Crafting in Style ~ stitching over stamped images.

This is my layout:



And a close up of the stamp and stitching:



The stamp is by Rhonna Farrer, and I got the layered butterfly idea from my friend Lea Price.

Cyber cropping at Scrap with V

Doing some more scrapping this weekend, over at the Scrap with V January cyber crop. My progress so far:

Kristy's challenge: Use only cardstock and embellishments, no patterned paper allowed.





This one is also based on Pencil Lines Sketch 64, which I modified a bit to make into a double.


Wendy's challenge: "Feminine with a difference" - use only blue and white, and NO flowers at all.

Scrappy New Year

I completed a couple of layouts for the New Year cyber crop over at Scrap Therapy.

Challenge 1: Based on a series of questions about 2007.
I chose Q18: What do you wish you'd done more of?



I also started out with one of my New Year's resolutions in mind - to *halve* my stash by the end of the year. So it's all done using older product and scraps.

Challenge 2: 8.5"x11" format, chipboard, paint

Using some more of my older patterned paper stash, and starting on my pile of chipboard off-cut strips. I really like the look of the journalling on chipboard, and painting it to match the other embellishments.

Last layouts for 2007

These two layouts I did for the Top 50 Australia December monthly challenges and now the month is over I can share them on my blog:



I used some of the Dream Street Papers that have been on my wishlist for so long. Finally got some and now I want some more... And Liz gave me a whole heap of alpha negatives last month... using some more of the Basic Grey ones on this layout.



More new patterned paper... this one is Creative Imaginations from the 'Winter Garden' collection... love the rich greens. Thank you to my Secret Santa Neen for sending me some of these papers.